When you’re trying to get the best from your industrial and construction work, it pays to get to know the equipment that you’re using. Not only should you use this equipment effectively, but you also need to learn how to use it as safely as possible.

This will prevent workplace injuries and liabilities to your company as a whole. Consider these crane lift safety tips to help your business.

1. Keep a Safe Distance From the Load You Are Carrying

If you want to be safe when using a crane lift, you must manage your distance. By standing too close to the load and lift when using it, you are more likely to sustain an injury or damage your load.

Actively maintain this distance with each use and post the proper range with signage throughout the workplace.

2. Only Use Seasoned and Professional Crane Lift Operators

It’s also crucial that you hire nothing but high-quality crane lift operators to assist you. When you have a professional that understands the equipment and uses the right technique, you’ll avoid setbacks with each construction job.

Be sure that you are also getting regular crane lift repairs and changing out parts when necessary. The help of experts is the best investment you can make.

4. Be Mindful of Weight and Safe Working Load

When you are aware of the different loading capacities of the crane that you operate, you will be able to avoid weighing it down too much. Weighing your crane down with more than it can handle is an easy way to cause accidents that can be damaging and even fatal.

Keep the SWL posted at all times so that your workers are fully aware.

5. Follow the Best Load Safety Practices

In addition to understanding the load weight limits, follow the practices that’ll be the most useful. Always be as careful as possible and work in teams.

Take the time to carefully hoist and attach every part of the load that you’re managing to avoid having anything fall and break. Above all, be sure there are onsite managers to supervise.

Manage Your Crane Safety Daily

Safety is of the utmost importance when operating a crane lift. Utilize the tips above to maintain crane safety.

Be sure to contact us when you need crane inspections, equipment repair, and more.

Did you know that you use electromagnetic brakes in your daily lives? While brakes may seem as if they are only used for extreme purposes, electromagnetic brakes have a wide variety of uses. From automotive, construction, even commercial use, such brakes are needed to operate and control machines.

With this guide, learn the benefits of electromagnetic brakes and how they’re useful in manufacturing equipment, from their role in production to how they can be helpful to you. Read on to learn some of the best qualities of electromagnetic brakes.

Benefits of Electromagnetic Brakes

Electromagnetic brakes have a variety of industrial purposes that make it one of the most requested brakes. It provides efficiency by allowing users to operate at optimal speed. If you keep these advantages in mind, you can get the best out of your electromagnetic brakes.

Electrically Activated But Transfer Torque Mechanically

Since electromagnetic brakes produce torque mechanically, they have over twice the power output of an engine. Unlike other brakes, when electromagnetic brakes are engaged, torque becomes more efficient. In such a state, torque can also regain the energy lost when braking.

Also, when designers construct torque, they first consider engagement time. The problem is, torque involves such a short engagement that it will start to lag after a long period. But, designers have come up with a solution: overexcitation.

Overexcitation supplies a burst of voltage that’s higher than usual. This voltage will generate a faster engagement time. In turn, it can make engagement times long-lasting.

To Stop/ Maintain Power

Electromagnetic brakes stop power from continuing with electronic force. They also use their power to maintain a stopped state. Such a function is crucial in lifting items or transporting them from one place to the next. The spot at which the brake stops allows efficient work to be done.

For example, in a machinery plant, an electromagnetic brake can stop and hold it’s position while a robot puts an item on its platform. Then that same platform can be transported to the next location. With such efficient braking, you’ll notice an increase in productivity due to it’s fast and smooth transitions.

How Are Electromagnetic Brakes Used in Manufacturing Equipment?

Electromagnetic brakes are featured in a variety of manufacturing equipment, including conveyor belts, copy machines, and food processing machinery. By providing smooth transitions from one place to the next, electromagnetic brakes offer backlash-free operation.

Also, they feature some of the best upgrades in modern cranes. You’ll not only save money but increase your profits due to its effective strategies.

So, How Can Electronmagetic Brakes Help You?

Since electromagnetic brakes power manufacturing equipment, they produce smooth operations. With powerful torque speed, they work to accomplish an end goal. By transporting items, electromagnetic brakes boost your productivity.

They can also save you money and increase your net gain. Unlike other braking systems, electromagnetic brakes don’t lag over time. For more information about braking systems, contact us.

The idea of working on an oil rig has always been a lot of big machines and dirty work. While this is true, not everyone understands the details of oil rig operations.

Even working in the industry, if you have never spent time out on an oil rig, it can be hard to piece together all the little details. Each job, part, and structure is essential, and without organization, they all fall apart.

To get yourself acquainted, we have put together a solid explanation of the basics of oil rig operations and the people who work on them.

The Basics of Oil Rig Operations

There are dozens of different variables that can make any single oil rig unique. Location is one of the biggest ones, but the number of people, company policy, and type of drill can be factors as well.

The point of an oil rig is simple, drill down, and extract oil. The process has hundreds of moving parts, and the balance of activity and part maintenance can make each day complex.

While we can go on for hours on each individual rig part, instead, we’ll focus on the core of any oil rig: the people.

The Workers of an Oil Rig and Their Jobs

The workers on an oil rig ensure the process is smooth and avoids damage to the equipment, oil supply, and surrounding area.

The seven positions below cover the basics of an oil rig, but often positions can include multiple people, and the numbers in each position vary.

1. Company Representative

The company representative will often be in charge of the general operations on a rig. They’re taken from the company that owns the rig. They are often either a senior manager from the company or a senior member of the crew.

Overseeing operations, a company representative will often direct the building of roads to the rig, installation of the wellhead, and final decisions on formation tests.

2. Derrick Worker

In a more permanent rig operation, a derrick worker is vital. They operate from the tall derricks surrounding the drill.

Often, a derrick worker will add or remove sections of pipe from the drill string. They add more pipe as the drill goes deeper and remove sections as the drill pulls back.

3. Driller

The position often manages the rig crew outside of the company representative. They operate the draw works, which are a system of cables and pulleys that runs the pipe, thus their operational name.

They can stand in for the toolpusher as needed.

4. Floor Workers

The most inexperienced people on the crew, the floor workers, always operate in pairs. They are the ones who operate the oil rig tongs.

Often there are two levels to the floor workers, the lead and the backup. The more experienced of the two will get the lead.

5. Motor Man

Often the extra or 5th operator, the motor man or motor worker, is an experienced position that gives support and backup to the positions as needed. Often they do close work with the driller.

6. Tool Pusher

While the company representative controls the operational decisions and over-arching plans, the tool pusher is the direct manager during operations hours.

The tool pusher is the field management compared to the company representative’s corporate management.

7. Lease Pumper

The leaser pumper is a position taken during the drilling of a new well. Their general focus is on ensuring that the rig remains clean and avoids damaging or spilling into the surrounding area.

When an oil rig is set up onto a leased area, such as a farm not owned by the oil company, it is onto the leaser pumper to ensure excess oil or improper mud pits do not taint the farm.

Quality Workers, Quality Equipment

Oil rig operations are a complocated affair. The wrong move and it could cost you thousands of dollars in damaged equipment and spilled oil.

With a better understanding of the jobs and operations of an oil rig, you can get a good grip on what kind of oil rig equipment you need. We at Kor-Pak distribute only the best, so our equipment is guaranteed quality.

The purpose of an industrial vibrator is about as straightforward as anything could be. Quite simply, it shakes things around to get them moving when they’re stuck or blocked.

Here’s a more comprehensive definition: industrial vibrators help materials flow through bins, hoppers, silos, drums, conveyors, funnels, chutes, and bags. They’re also used to prepare concrete.

And we haven’t even scratched the surface. Industrial vibrating equipment has many different uses, some of which might surprise you. We’ll discuss a few of these in the following paragraphs.

Industrial Vibrators

All industrial vibrators use vibration to separate granular or powdery substances or small parts. Then, they can move, flow, or settle unimpeded by friction or blockages.

This technology is especially important for handling large quantities or a large volume of material at a time. What follows are some examples of where and how industrial vibrators are used.

Mixing and Compacting Concrete

Not allowing concrete to consolidate correctly can lead to product defects, compromise their strength, and create surface flaws.

Therefore, concrete vibrators are enlisted to consolidate freshly poured concrete and release trapped air and excess water, thus allowing the concrete to settle and solidify in the formwork (mold).

Hopper Vibrators, Silo Vibrators, and Vibrators in Train Cars

These are short- or long-term storage containers for grain or other material comprised of loose particles. The materials need to be funneled into other containers when ready for use, but they might have settled or clumped.

Vibrators loosen the material so it can flow into the new containers for further transport, feeding animals, bagging to sell, and so on.

Vibratory Feeders for Sorting

These are vibrating bowls with sorting screens to separate mixed batches of small components–such as bolts or screws. Once sorted, the items are put on a conveyor to be counted and packaged.

Truck Vibrators Spread Road Salt, Fertilizer, etc.

These materials, which are dumped or spread in large quantities by trucks, are prone to clumping and sticking to the inside of the truck. Having a vibrator in place prevents workers from losing work time. It also removes the need to remove the material manually.

A Sweet Conclusion

Would you believe that industrial vibrators play an important role in manufacturing chocolate? They’re used to maximize purity. After pouring the chocolate into molds, industrial vibrators bring any bubbles to the surface.

The vibrating motion also loosens cooled chocolates from their molds for removal without manual labor.

When you need an industrial vibrator or any similar or related equipment for your business, let us know. We just might have what you need!

In 2018, manufacturing companies used more than 30% of the total American energy use. That energy is put to good use because manufacturing adds trillions of dollars to the U.S. economy.

The question is, how do manufacturers transform that energy into goods? Motors power industrial machines, but how do they turn that power into a product?

Read on to learn about the belt drive and why it’s a necessary part of manufacturing operations.

What is a Belt Drive?

Belt drives are a type of power transmission system that’s been around for over 200 years. Early versions of this drive system used flat leather belts or ropes. Today, rubber is the most common material for belts.

It’s basically a pulley system. Two pulleys are connected by a belt that transmits power from one pulley shaft to the other. There is one driving pulley and one driven pulley.

The belt’s movement is what transmits power from an engine to a mechanical device.

There are three general types of belts: flat belts, V-belts, and synchronous belts. V-belts are the most common because of their strong friction thanks to their trapezoid shape. Synchronous belts have teeth, so they’re good in slick environments.

How Are They Used in Industrial Machines?

The transmission bridges the gap between the motor and the moving parts of industrial machinery. The most common transmission systems are belt drives, chain drives, and gear drives.

Belt systems are used in grain belt conveyors, sawmills, printing presses, punch presses, and more. They’re even used in exhaust fan systems and laundry machinery.

They’re most commonly used when the two shafts (driving and driven) are very far apart, as in a grain belt conveyor. Rubber belts are useful in this situation because you can get them in any length you need.

Belt systems are also standard in industrial machines that deal with shock loads like crushers or hoists. The sudden change in force can damage the motor.

But, a flexible belt can slip backward. This can make the belt overheat, but it will protect the motor from more expensive damage.

Benefits of a Belt Drive

Belt systems are the most affordable transmission product option. They’re simple to install, absorb shock and vibration, and are relatively quiet.

Belt systems need regular maintenance to make sure the belts are in alignment. But, the maintenance costs are cheaper with belt systems than they are with a chain or gear drives.

The other transmission options are chain drives and gear drives. Chain drives are more compact than belts, but they’re also more expensive. Gear drives are noisy and need regular lubrication.

Because of the simple design of belt drives, these systems last longer. They can handle wear and tear, especially with routine skilled maintenance.

Choosing the Right Power Transmission for Your Operation

The belt drive has been a viable transmission option for hundreds of years. It’s a good choice if your shafts are far apart or you regularly deal with shock loads.

It’s a quiet transmission option that’s also cost-effective.

If you need help choosing the right transmission products, contact us today. Our knowledgeable staff will answer any questions you have.

The powerful industry crane is the workhouse foundation for a large variety of industrial sites. With it, your productivity can be enormous, but you must use it in the right ways.

Keeping up with your crane service requires an organized schedule, a sharp eye for details, and proper diligence. Without this, you can waste a lot of money and productive time

Here are the most critical pieces of appropriate crane service to keep in mind. Follow these, and you’ll have a long service from your cranes.

1. Organize Regular Maintenance

From production to maintenance, keeping a refined schedule is the best way to ensure that nothing slips under your radar. The last thing you need is something to fall apart because you weren’t monitoring your equipment.

Putting together weekly, monthly, and yearly checks will depend on how often and intense you use your cranes. More often is always the safer option.

2. Checking The Small Things

When doing your maintenance checks, it can be easy to check the major functions and parts. These are important, but even the smallest of details can be problematic.

Lubrication, loose bolts and rivets, and signs of rust are all pieces you need to keep an eye out for. Any of these things can cause significant problems if ignored.

3. Keep Your Records Straight

To get a proper picture of the wear and tear on your cranes, you need all the information you can get. Every piece can paint a more accurate picture.

This will include the number of times used per day, the weight of loads, the speed that you operate it, and more tiny details. These can help you plot out maintenance schedules as well as show which aspects get worked the most.

4. Test Your Loads

No matter what your cranes are carrying, you need to do frequent tests of their load capacity to ensure you aren’t pushing it. When you have consistent loads, then a change can throw you off.

It’s good to know the top end and low end of your crane’s capacity. This can also help you test for potential strain. When your production shifts, you know how far you can push it.

5. Structure Frequent Safety Checks

In all industrial environments, safety is paramount. As you test the equipment, so too should you test your employee’s ability to operate it.

A crane service can be pointless if your employees aren’t following the standards you are testing by. As well, your cranes and employees can be in danger if safety standards aren’t followed.

6. Note Wear Before Disaster

Strain can build up over time, and all mechanical objects suffer wear and tear. It is inevitable, so it is best to prepare yourself for when it happens.

Check the points of strain, such as cabling, joints, and clutches. Grinding of metal, damage to the metal or even rust can spell bad news for your crane’s parts.

Be ready to repair and replace when your crane shows too much damage so that you don’t waste time waiting for parts.

Perfecting Crane Service

With these tips for better crane service, you know you can keep your powerful industrial machines in the best of shape. Your investment matters and is the lifeblood to your work, so best to keep it that way.

When you need quality cranes to go with your quality crane service, there is no better provider than Kor-Pak. Contact us today to get your quality crane parts.

Metal fabrication work isn’t for the faint-hearted. It can be a tough and dangerous job. However, implementing necessary fabrication safety measures is an easy way to decrease injuries and increase productivity.

Keep you and your employees safe by implementing the following safety measures.

Metal Fabrication Work Safety Measures

One of the best ways to learn how to make a work environment safer is by paying attention to the statistics. For example, knowing the most common metalworking injuries is the first step in preventing them in the future. These include cuts, abrasions, burns, strains, and eye injuries.

The fewer injuries you have to deal with in your shop, the quicker you’ll be able to complete projects and other orders.

1. Ensure Everyone is Well-Trained

First, start with a rigid training program for new employees. They may have completed all of their necessary courses and received all of the proper certifications, but every shop is unique.

Make sure they spend an adequate amount of time learning the ropes of their new work environment, shadowing seasoned fabricators, and understanding what the job entails.

2. Wear the Appropriate Protective Gear

One of the most essential fabrication work safety measures is making sure people are wearing all of the necessary protectives gear. Metal fabrication requires high-heat and high-pressure equipment. Without the proper protective gear, people can quickly get burned, cut, or worse.

This also includes making eye protection mandatory at all times. As eye injuries are one of the most common accidents in fabrication work, there’s no reason to risk it.

3. Use Equipment and Tools as Intended

Next, make sure everyone in the shop is using the machinery and tools as intended. Fabrication equipment is designed for specific purposes and specific materials. Using these tools for anything other than their intended purposes is a great way to damage expensive equipment or cause injuries in the workplace.

Additionally, make sure people are going the extra mile to ensure safety using their equipment. It may take an extra 10 minutes to secure safety clamps, but that’s better than a piece of metal being projected across the shop.

4. Stay Focused

Another common cause of injuries in a fabrication workshop is a simple lack of focus. Due to the nature of fabrication work, it requires your undivided attention. Being distracted while working with dangerous tools and machines could be a huge mistake.

Make sure your employees are staying on task and remaining focused. If you notice someone is distracted by anything (personal or professional reasons), address it immediately.

5. Encourage a Safe and Injury-Free Work Environment

Finally, people often need a little extra motivation to do things by the numbers. While cutting corners can seem like the right move to save time, it often leads to shoddy work or injuries.

Encourage your employees to stay safe and do things right by offering rewards at the end of each week or month if the workplace stays injury-free.

Be Prepared to Handle Accidents

No matter what protocols and policies you put into place, fabrication work is dangerous and will eventually lead to an injury. It may be a small cut or burn or something much more severe.

Regardless, being prepared to handle these situations is key to running a safe workshop. Make sure you have plenty of first aid gear on hand, including a defibrillator, just in case.

If your goal is to keep your workshop as safe and productive as possible, you need to make sure your equipment is up to par. Contact us if you’re looking for equipment repair or need any other products!

Water jet cutting is a process of using highly pressurized water to cut through metal.

This is a useful alternative to laser cutting parts for machinery and fabrication.

The use of water jet cutting dates back to the 1950s. But, the technology wasn’t widespread in use until around the 1970s.

Water jet cutting was first used to cut lumber. Scientists experimented with pressurizing the water. This led to many ideas for the use of water jet cutting.

Learn more about the many uses of water jet cutting below.

Water Jet Cutting: A Wave Of The Future

If water jet cutting dates back to the 1950s, how can it be a part of the future?

Water jet cutting is useful on a variety of materials, from steel and ceramics to stone and metals.

Pressurized water combines with crystal garnets and aluminum oxide to cut material.

Water jet cutting is an alternative to laser cutting. A few reasons someone would choose water jet cutting are as followed:

Something cut by a laser will be hot from the laser, whereas a water jet will keep the product cool.

Water jet cutting is preferable on more materials than a laser.

Water jet cutting allows for metal to lay flat while cutting.

Water jet cutting is cheaper than cutting something with a laser.

Also, the water jet can keep the molecular structure of a material. This makes it a perfect alternative to using a laser. This is because the heat that a laser produces changes the material.

Water jet cutting is nothing to play with, though. The water used reach pressurization of 90,000 PSI. This pressure is intense and needs extreme caution when handling.

Water Jet Uses

People use water jet cutting in robotics, science equipment, and machinery parts too.

The ability of the water jet to make close, cold, precise cuts make it ideal in the production of machinery parts.

Water jet cutting is essential in the building of the robots of tomorrow. Robots need many small, intricate pieces. Everything from the base plates to the individual gears is possible with a water jet.

Water jet cutting helped create robotics for NASA. The technology also made machinery that researchers will use in farms of tomorrow.

Some water jets operate with a low PSI. They can so the jet can cut softer materials. The water jets use the lower PSI to cut rubber, foam, textiles, and leather.

Power In Water

Water jets have created new and exciting inventions.

With the ability to create clean cuts on a variety of surfaces, this is the start of new discoveries. Anyone can make their ideas come true with the help of water jet cutting.

The scientific community has begun to embrace this technology. Water jet cutting is creating new products and technologies!

You know a variety of different ways you can use water jet cutting. For more information, we can help!

Like other equipment and machinery, cranes age. And with age comes wear and tear and the inability to keep up with newer equipment. Of course, investing in a modern crane doesn’t always fit into your budget.

The fast pace of innovation makes keeping up with the latest and greatest in equipment difficult for many companies. But you’ve got another solution, crane modernization.

Read on for a brief breakdown of the various crane components and what happens during modernization.

Crane Components and Crane Modernization

During modernizations, cranes often undergo control upgrades, lifting upgrades, and mechanical upgrades. Let’s break each of these down further. Along the way, we’ll discuss the components involved, too.

The modern workplace makes worker safety paramount. As a result, control upgrades are often in order when it comes to bringing a crane up to today’s standards.

Control Upgrades

What’s the problem with outdated control systems? They tend to be load-dependent and must regularly get tuned or adjusted. What’s more, getting parts for older systems can prove difficult and time-consuming.

Fortunately, control system upgrades are affordable. And they’ll improve the safety of your workplace. They include installing a radio control system and a load display system, so you always know how much you hoist.

Industrial machinery has evolved at a rapid pace. It has enabled humans to pioneer technologies such as artificial intelligence, genome editing, augmented reality, advanced robotics, and 3-D printing.

This new wave of technology will forever alter the way we live, work, and connect with each other.

Technology is advancing by leaps and bounds. Because of this, we don’t know yet how exactly these changes will pan out. What we can do is make informed guesses at what the future of industrial machinery will look like.

The History of the Industrial Revolution

In the 1700s, the First Industrial Revolution sparked to life with the advent of factories. It used water and steam power to mechanize production.

The Second Industrial Revolution came about in the early 20th century with the invention of automobiles. Electricity fueled mass production, changing the scope of manufacturing.

The Third Industrial Revolution came after World War II.

The creation of computers became a game-changer. Thanks to electronic and information technology, production became automated.

Now, the Fourth Industrial Revolution is here to build off of what the Third accomplished. The fusion of different technologies is altering the landscape. It is blurring the lines between the physical, digital, and biological.

Internet of Things (IoT)

The Internet of Things is now all around us. It refers to physical objects connected to the internet via embedded devices. For example, a light that can be flipped on and off using a smartphone app is an IoT device.

Now industrial machinery is on its way to being revolutionized by IoT.

Called Industrial IoT, it involves the IoT technology’s application in industrial settings. This streamlines automation and creates new business models. Industrial IoT will also allow for smart manufacturing. Industrial machinery can now connect to the cloud and use machine-to-machine communication (M2M).

Augmented Reality (AR)

Companies are adopting new tools that allow them to create and test their products in a virtual environment.

Augmented reality is enabling people to troubleshoot problems with an expert who may be hours or days away. This remote assistance is altering how solutions are found, letting people in different locations all around the world come together in a live view and troubleshoot together.

AR will help companies to use the best expert for that particular field, while simultaneously cut back on travel costs and expedite the problem.

3-D Printing

Three-dimensional printing has improved upon manufacturing in several ways.

It has reduced waste by recycling plastic. 3-D printing also removes any wait time for a replacement part or transportation.

Thanks to 3-D printing, the creation of a product is now more seamless. For example, where a product once required six different pieces, 3-D printing can now create one finished piece without the need for additional steps like welding.

As 3-D printing grows more advanced, mass production will yet again enter a new era.

Find a Future with Kor-Pak

At Kor-Pak, we represent a dozen quality manufacturers and distribute thousands of parts. We have over 40 years of experience and are partnered with the top industry players.